Wo m e n & T e c h n o l o g y C o n f e r e n c e

11:00 a.m. Registration and Networking Lower Lobby

12:00 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. Luncheon and Keynote Address PineArria HinesPresident & CEOAllegheny Science & Technology“2016 WV Small Business Person of the Year”

1:45 p.m. – 3:15 p.m. Educational Breakout SessionsEngaging Students in STEM Birch/Hawthorne

Dr. Amelia Courts, President, The Education AllianceDr. Kathy D’Antoni, Chief Career & Technical Education Officer, West Virginia Department of Education

Dr. Sytil Murphy, Assistant Professor of Physics, Shepherd UniversityModerator: Ali Mabel, Director, Innovation Strategies, Fourth Economy Consulting (listed under Pathways to Tech)

Despite efforts to keep female students interested in STEM throughout their K-12 years, gender STEM problems continue. In a 2015 survey, just 3 percent of high school girls were interested in engineering, and only 2 percent were interested in technology. That compares to 31 percent and 15 percent of high school boys, respectively. And of all bachelor’s degrees awarded in 2014, women accounted for only 13 percent of degrees in STEM, while men made up 28 percent.1 What can we do to increase these numbers? And what is being done in West Virginia to do so? This panel will examine these questions, and discuss why this is so important to our state’s economic transition.

Research on Gender & STEM Elm/Willow

Dr. Jan Cuny, Program Director for Computing Education, the National Science Foundation

Dr. Suzanne Konz, College of Health Professions, Marshall University

Dr. Melissa Latimer, Professor & Director of the ADVANCE Center, West Virginia University

Moderator: Dr. Jan Taylor, Director, Division of Science and Research at the WV Higher Education Policy Commission

What’s behind the numbers surrounding gender and STEM education and research? What are the social and environmental barriers that keep the number of women in STEM low? What strategies does the National Science Foundation use to broaden participation by women and minorities in STEM research, and why must we do so? Learn more on this important topic, and find out about research underway at West Virginia University and Marshall University. A distinguished panel of experts will discussthese issues and share their own experiences in higher education and research.

Thursday, October 6, 2016AGENDA

1 State Science & Technology Institute, December 2015

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3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. Are You Cyber Secure? PineSusan Pauley, Steptoe & Johnson PLLCShawn Morgan, Steptoe & Johnson PLLCMark Combs, Steptoe & Johnson PLLC

Are you cyber secure? Personal and professional issues surrounding cybersecurity will be examined. On the personal side, the panel will discuss best practices surrounding passwords, data preservation and backup, protecting mobile devices and managing your social media presence. Organizational tips for training employees to be aware of phishing scams, whaling and ransom attacks will be shared. And in the event that your data is breached, they’ll explain how to respond and who to call. A panel of three experts from Steptoe and Johnson PLLC will lead this panel and provide examples from a technology perspective, legal perspective, and practical approach, with ideas to implement immediately.

5:45 p.m. – 6:15 p.m. Reception Aspen Hospitality

6:15 p.m. – 7:45 p.m. Dinner and Keynote Address PineDr. Jan Cuny, Program Director for Computing EducationNational Science Foundation

8:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. Stargazing & Dessert PavilionDr. Kathryn Williamson, Professor of Astronomy, West Virginia University

Megan Jones, Graduate Student, West Virginia UniversityCanaan Valley’s dark skies make it a prime destination for stargazing into the celestial night sky. Dr. Williamson will guide us on a stargazing adventure.. In addition to contemplating the beauty of the night sky, we’ll enjoy dessert, coffee and networking in Canaan’s outdoor Pavilion.

8:15 a.m. – 9:15 a.m. Breakfast & Lightning Pitch Showdown Pine

9:30 a.m. – 10:45 a.m. Educational Breakout SessionsPathways to Tech—Even With a Liberal Arts Degree! Birch/HawthorneCheryl Ball, Associate Professor, Digital Publishing Studies, West Virginia University English Department

Nichole Grossman, Director of Graduate Admissions & Recruitment, West Virginia University College of Business & Economics

Bernie Deem, Principal, AlignHRFacilitator: Jocelyn Sheppard, Principal Consultant, Red House Consulting

Feel like you’re missing out by not being in a tech career? Wondering how you could transition to a new STEM career with a liberal arts degree? This panel will examine why a liberal arts degree has become tech’s hottest ticket. The knowledge economy prizes “liberal arts thinking”—including creativity, logic and clear writing skills. Top salaries may still go to engineers, but today’s war for talent in the tech world is now focused on nontechnical positions, like sales and marketing, consulting, and training. Learn more from a diverse panel of experts who will share insights into how tech companies seek people who can help others incorporate tech into their everyday lives and routines.

Friday, October 7, 2016

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Owning Entrepreneurship—Risk & Reward Elm/WillowMarnie Rustemeyer, Founder & CEO, Billow GlobalMichele Smith, Director of Contracts, KeyLogicMindy Walls, Assistant Vice President of Entrepreneurship & Innovation, Office of the Provost, West Virginia University

Moderator: Kristina Oliver, State Director, West Virginia Small Business Development Center

Have you ever thought of owning your own business? Or had an idea that a business could be built around? Entrepreneurs launch companies when they see a gap in the market that they can fill, whether it’s a product or a service. Women entrepreneurs are often well attuned to market needs and their multi-tasking skills translate well to running a business. In this breakout session, learn about what it takes to be an entrepreneur and what resources can help an entrepreneur not only start a business, but also succeed.

11:00 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. Educational Breakout SessionsNon-traditional Choices, Exceptional Opportunities Birch/HawthornePhilomena Krosmico, The Hershey CompanyMajor Anne Perella, West Virginia National GuardCynthia Rodina, Aviation Instructor, Pierpont Community & Technical College

Sarah Tucker, Chancellor, West Virginia Council for Community & Technical Education

Moderator: Jill Watkins, Principal, Watkins Design WorksWhat types of non-traditional careers should we encourage more women to consider, and why is that a good idea? Many types of jobs have been predominantly held by men for many years, with limited numbers of women entering certain fields—whether it’s in engineering, manufacturing supply chains or aviation mechanics. While traditional stereotypes have begun to break down in recent years, there is still ample opportunity for women to explore non-traditional jobs. Those who do may find that the benefits include higher wages and more upwardly-mobile advancement. The rest of us all benefit by having more women bringing their insights and experiences into the non-traditional workplace.

To Tweet or Not to Tweet--That and Elm/WillowOther Social Media Questions Sara McDowell, Executive Director, Big Brothers Big Sisters South Central WV and President, The Media Squirrel

In this session we will explore the evolving world of social media and the increasingly influential role it has in communications today. We’ll learn what exactly is social media, the differences between the various platforms currently available and what the future holds for developing applications. We’ll break it all down so attendees will embrace and not fear social media as an essential tool for communicating.

12:30 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. Luncheon & Keynote Address PineDr. Stefanie TompkinsOffice Director, Defense Sciences OfficeDefense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)

2:00 p.m. Conference Adjourns

Wo m e n & T e c h n o l o g y C o n f e r e n c e P re sen t e r s and B i og raph i e s

CHERYL BALLCheryl E. Ball is Associate Professor of Digital Publishing Studies and Director of the Digital Publishing Institute at West Virginia University. In 2010, Ball received tenure at Illinois State University with the first open-access, all-digital portfolio. Since 2006, Ball has been editor of theonline peer-reviewed open-access journal Kairos: Rhetoric, Technology, and Pedagogy, which exclusively publishes digital media scholarship and is read in 180 countries. Her recent researchin editorial workflows and digital publishing infrastructures can be found in multiple journals andedited collections, as well as on her personal repository, http://ceball.com. During the 2013-14academic year, she served as a Fulbright Scholar at the Oslo School of Architecture and Design,studying research mediation practices and teaching academic literacies to Ph.D. students. She iscurrently the co-principal investigator (along with Andrew Morrison) on a $1-million Andrew W.Mellon Foundation grant to build an open-access multimedia academic publishing platform,Vega, and serves as the executive director of the Council of Editors of Learned Journals. Ball has an M.F.A. in poetry from Virginia Commonwealth University, where she completed theschool’s first electronic, interactive thesis, and a Ph.D. in rhetoric and technical communication from Michigan Technological University.

MARK COMBSMark Combs is the Chief Information Officer of Steptoe & Johnson. He has expertise in information security, technology, strategy, people and project management. Mr. Combs has provided leadership for all areas of information technology including networking, telecommunica-tions, PC support, application support, project management, and data center operations andcustomer service. For the past year, Mr. Combs worked as Associate Vice President and AssistantChief Information Officer for West Virginia United Health System. He has brought his experiencein the information technology field to various other health care facilities. Mr. Combs is a CertifiedProfessional in Health Information and Management Systems and a Certified HIPAA Security Specialist. He is a graduate of West Virginia University.

DR. AMELIA COURTS Dr. Amelia Courts has extensive leadership experience in the education sector and a record ofsuccess in collaborating with business and community organizations to positively impact statewideinitiatives. Since 2013 she has served as the President/CEO of The Education Alliance which operates programs and advances policies to improve achievement by public school students inWest Virginia.

In her role as President, Dr. Courts is leading the Alliance to implement strategies that expand the organizational footprint and effectiveness. These include hosting the organization’s first education summit, co-sponsored by the Governor, which convened business, community and education leaders from across the state.

Dr. Courts also initiated statewide EDTalks, an education-based speaker series that promotes innovative discussion and big ideas about connecting education, jobs and West Virginia’s future.The Alliance also provided technical assistance to the Governor’s STEM Council to engage thepublic, education organizations, business and industry to find innovative methods of preparingour students to fill the impending workforce needs of the state. In addition, she worked to help support an expansion of the AmeriCorps program which nearly doubled the number of AmeriCorps members impacting students across the state.

Prior to coming to the Alliance, she served for three years as Assistant State Superintendent at the West Virginia Department of Education. In that work, she developed and implemented major policy directives, worked collaboratively with the governor's office and legislature, and coordi-nated programs to improve the educational outcomes of the state's two hundred and eighty thousand students.

Dr. Courts serves on the Board of Directors of the WV Children’s Home Society, is a member ofthe Remake Learning Council, and serves as an appointed member of the Education Commissionof the States. She is both internationally and locally experienced, having taught English as a Second Language (ESL) for approximately six years throughout Asia (Japan, China and brieflyKorea) and at Marshall University. She completed her doctoral degree at West Virginia Universitywith a degree in Education Administration in 2002.

DR. JAN CUNY Jan Cuny is a program officer at the National Science Foundation (NSF) where she leads the Computer and Information Science and Engineering Directorate’s efforts on broadening participation and education in computing. Her work led to the establishment of the eight nationalBPC-A Alliances that together address underrepresentation in computing from elementary schoolthrough the research and professional levels. More recently, she spearheaded NSF’s efforts to get inclusive, rigorous, academic computing courses into America’s schools. That work led to thedevelopment and scaling of several new and exciting high school CS courses (including the newAP CS Principles course) and it laid the foundation for the 2016 launch of President Obama’s CS for All Initiative.

For her efforts with underserved populations, Jan has received a number of awards including the 2006 ACM President’s Award, the 2007 CRA A. Nico Habermann Award, the 2009 AnitaBorg Institute’s Woman of Vision Award for Social Impact, the 2015 NSF Distinguished ServiceAward, and the 2016 SIGCSE Distinguished Educator Award.

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DR. KATHY D’ANTONI Dr. Kathy D’Antoni was appointed the Assistant State Superintendent of Schools with the West Virginia Department of Education, Division of Technical and Adult Education Services on June 1,2010. She is the former Vice Chancellor of the West Virginia Council for Community and Technical College Education. She obtained her doctorate degree from West Virginia University in Higher Education Administration. Dr. D’Antoni began her career in education as a teacher. In 1975, she left the education field to participate in a family owned business in Myrtle Beach,SC. She returned to education in 1992 and worked with the Tech Prep initiative at Marshall University and later as the State Director for Tech Prep. She served as interim president of WVState Community and Technical College in 2008. Dr. D’Antoni has worked extensively with curriculum alignment and curriculum development projects. She is the past president of the National Association for Tech Prep Leaders and sits on the advisory board for the League of Innovation’s SAIL initiative and Marshall University’s teacher education program. Currently, she is chair of the Seamless Education Committee for West Virginia’s Vision Shared initiative. Dr. D’Antoni has authored a number of articles on effective transition practices from publicschools to higher education and collaborated on two books with national authors: Career Pathways and Adult Career Pathways. The Office of Institutional Education Programs in now a part of the Division of Technical and Adult Education Services.

BERNIE DEEMBernie Deem brings a new perspective to HR with her fresh insights and unique ideas for solvingold problems. These abilities, combined with her extensive expertise and knowledge, have ledBernie to be twice honored by the Society of Human Resources Management (SHRM). She is oneof only two individuals to have received the Charleston SHRM HR Award of Excellence and wasnamed the HR Professional of the Year, an award bestowed by the WV State Council of SHRM.Governor Earl Ray Tomblin recently named Ms. Deem to the West Virginia Board of Personnelwhere is the only non-lawyer appointee.

Bernie is a frequently requested speaker and is best known for her engaging style and high energy. Some of her topics have been “The Seven Secret Reasons Employees Sue”, “Personneland Employees from Hell”, “HR Secrets I Only Tell My Friends”, and “Building High Impact Relationships”. Her presentation on “We Don’t Hate You, We Just Want You to Leave” is the result of research she has done on how to minimize the odds of a lawsuit based on using a technique she developed called The Graceful Exit. She is also a published author, having written articles on “Frequent Mistakes Made by Small Business Owners”, “Five Simple Rules forDealing With a Marginal Performer”, and “Motivating Without Money”.

Bernie also serves as an expert witness for both defendant and plaintiff cases, as well as a caseevaluator. Her experience in investigations, analyzing data and depositions combined with herspecial ability to articulate her perspective have all lent to her expertise. She has used this experience to create a dynamic presentation on Unlawful Harassment, a training she has conducted over 50 times using her testimony to emphasize the havoc and expense that can come to a company as a result of improper policies and processes.

Also known for her collaborative work style, Bernie left the corporate world and founded DeemHRin 2000. She has specialized in building client relationships with retainer services that providedaccess to HR portals and customized HR processes as well as unlimited phone calls to DeemHRconsultants.

In 2013 Bernie started a new company with two partners located in Wheeling and Bridgeport creating AlignHR, LLC, an HR advisory firm that emphasizes high quality service with a personaltouch. .

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NICHOLE GROSSMAN Nichole is the Director of Graduate Admissions and Recruitment at the College of Business and Economics at West Virginia University. In this role, she works closely with faculty and prospective students interested in pursuing an advanced degree in a business-related field. Prior to working atWVU, Nichole worked for 4.5 years at Cornell University within the Samuel Curtis Johnson GraduateSchool of Management. There she worked with students working in STEM fields who wished to enhance their skillsets with a business focused degree. She also worked closely with faculty, students, staff and alumni interested in the intersection of technology and business to establish strong programs meant to develop students who encompass the skills necessary to move companies forward in the technology driven workplace.

ARRIA HINESArria Hines is easily considered among that rare segment of adept, collaborative leaders intoday’s rapidly evolving business climate – an individual who is truly capable of establishingand building trusted relationships with nearly everyone she encounters. Arria’s ability to sparkconnections between people, create partnerships and alliances, and generate forward momentum to ‘get things done’ is one of her most treasured assets.

An accountant by training, Arria earned her B.S. in Accounting at West Virginia WesleyanCollege and her MBA from West Virginia University, establishing the footing for her to beginher entrepreneurial journey over 25 years ago. Arria’s enthusiasm and genuine, ever-presentpleasant attitude radiates a sincere passion to help people and led to founding her first company in the basement of her home in 1989. Armed with her “get it done” attitude, she navigated a successful career as a program manager for the likes of SAIC and RangerGolf Corporation, where she provided oversight for projects and operations exceeding $120million in annual revenue until co-founding Allegheny Science & Technology in 2009.

Now as CEO & President of one of America’s fastest growing privately held companies, Arriais an inspiring example for women CEOs in West Virginia and throughout the country. With aprojected revenue of $50M in 2016, Arria has led AST from a two-person company with onegovernment contract to nearly 240 employees and more than 14 contracts with multiple federal agencies in just seven years. She was most recently named the Small Business Administration 2016 West Virginia Small Business Person of the Year.

Today, Arria resides in Lewis County, West Virginia with her husband and son. She is a dedicated contributor to the communities in which she resides and serves – giving back with every opportunity and specifically, supporting small businesses in West Virginia. Arria is a member of the Board of Directors for Teaming to Win, a West Virginia non-profit organization providing educational, networking, business and workforce development opportunities. She also serves on the West Virginia University MBA Advisory Council, I79 Development Council and the West Virginia Governors STEM Council.

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SUZANNE M. KONZSuzanne M. Konz, PhD, ATC, CSCS is an Assistant Professor of Biomechanics with the School of Kinesiology at Marshall University. She serves as the Lab Director for the School of Kinesiology’s Biomechanical Lab. Suzie received a PhD in Exercise Science from BrighamYoung University, a Master’s of Science in Kinesiology from Indiana University – Blooming-ton, and a Bachelor of Science from Iowa Wesleyan College. Suzie was a member of Wesleyan’s cross country and track teams. She was an Academic All-American in Indoor and Outdoor Track. She earned All-American honors in Outdoor Track as well. Suzie worked as a certified athletic trainer and as a certified strength and conditioning specialist in clinical, high school, collegiate, and professional athletic settings. She worked with soccer, football, softball, and track at the D-I level. Suzie was an athletic trainer for the 2002 SLC Olympic games where she was assigned to bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton. As part of her duties with SLOC, she was assigned to the same events for the test events in theyears prior to the Games. She is involved with USA Track & Field as a member of the SportScience Biomechanics group; specializing in the throwing events and is specifically assignedto hammer throw. Suzie has worked the NFL Combine performing isokinetic testing on NFLprospects. Besides researching hammer throw technique, Suzie’s other areas of research include the biomechanical effects of weight change in athletes from the ages of 12-21, re-injury rates of overweight and obese athletes, and improving lower extremity dysfunction.

PHILOMENA KROSMICOPhilomena Krosmico retired from the Hershey Company where she had a 34 year career inSupply Chain and Manufacturing. She recently relocated back to West Virginia to work onher masters in Industrial Engineering and Management Systems at West Virginia Universityand is enjoying teaching Probability and Statistics for Engineers. Her most recent position atHershey was Director of Supply Chain, focused in supply planning, inventory control andpackaging procurement for all North American and Mexico operations. Her team scheduledover 330 manufacturing operations (internally and externally sourced) and deployed to 5major distribution centers. Her team was responsible for minimizing packaging and finishedgoods inventory levels, while meeting customer service targets to support over $7 billion insales.

Prior to Director of Supply Chain, she spent 23 years in manufacturing leadership roles. She was Sr. Director of Manufacturing, Plant Manager, Manufacturing Manager, OperationsManager and Shift Manager. She led both union and non-union facilities. She was amanufacturing lead in key labor contract negotiations. She was the plant manager duringthe $300 million capital expenditure that doubled size of her plant and tripled the volume.When complete the plant was the largest chocolate making facility in the world. She led thechange management and merging of two plant work forces into one highly modernizedfacility. She drove change in both technology and workforce development. She partneredwith corporate Industrial Engineering to develop and implement a new continuous improvement model for all of manufacturing. She began her career as an Industrial Engineer, after graduation from WVU in 1981. She held numerous roles including, plant engineer, capital program administration, new product development and installation and computer simulation team.

DR. MELISSA LATIMERDr. Latimer is a Professor in the Sociology & Anthropology Department at West Virginia University, and Director of WVU’s ADVANCE Center. She served as department chair for five years (2006-2011).

Much of her published work involves understanding individual experiences with social insurance and social assistance programs. Her main research objective has been to examine the connection between and the consequences of labor market inequality and welfare inequality.Her work involves understanding individual experiences with social insurance (i.e., unemploymentinsurance) and social assistance programs (i.e., Aid to Families with Dependent Children-AFDC/Temporary Assistance to Needy Families-TANF) and how these experiences vary by gender,race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, age, and place (i.e., South versus non-Southern location,rural versus urban, Appalachian versus non-Appalachian location, etc.). This research agenda has been particularly significant given the historical gender and racial inequities within the welfaresystem, the severe economic disadvantage of rural areas and rural states (especially in the Appalachian region), and the massive changes in U.S. society set in motion by the 1996 welfare reform law (TANF).

Her recent research examines gender inequality and academia and organizational change within institutions of higher education. The WVU ADVANCE project is designed to improve our understanding of barriers to large-scale organizational change. The goal is to develop an institutional culture committed to diversity and equality in employee recruitment, development,retention, and promotion to leadership. The knowledge generated from this work can be translated into more effective, systemic approaches to change and can be applied in a variety of large-scale organizations in the academic, public, or private sector. The second area of research connected with the ADVANCE grant is her interest in understanding the disciplinary similarities/differences in academic training and as well as the implications of that training on the attitudes and behaviors of faculty members. Over the course of her career at WVU she haspublished 27 manuscripts, including one book, and acquired $3,997,627 in external funding.She currently is a co-investigator on a $3.2 million National Science Foundation ADVANCE IT grant, and primary investigator on a $240,500 NSF Career-Life Balance grant.

Sara McDowellExecutive Director, Big Brothers Big Sisters of South Central West Virginia

Sara McDowell has more than 20 years of experience in marketing and communications,government relations and nonprofit leadership. She began her professional career work-ing for the Missouri State Treasurer, which included lobbying on behalf of the treasurer on issues related to banking, investments and other areas of interest. Later she joined thestaff of the Missouri Senate as a communications liaison, where she assisted members ofthe Senate with message development, speech writing and media relations. She workedclosely with the president pro-tem on issues of economic and workforce development,and monitored hundreds of other legislative measures each year. As an independent lobbyist and development professional, she has worked with various industries with interests in banking; telecommunications; higher education; children's issues; and animal welfare.

Sara resides in South Charleston with her husband Charles, a rotary and fixed wing pilotand the director of the WV State Aviation Division. They spend considerable time at thefamily farm in near Reedy, WV and cabin in Pocahontas County

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SHAWN MORGANShawn Morgan is Of Counsel with Steptoe & Johnson PLLC. She has extensive federal court trial experience and is skilled in handling government investigations and grand jury witness appearances. A 13-year veteran of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Northern District of West Virginia, she prosecuted federal criminal cases, including those involving white collar crimes, and investigated cybersecurity breaches. Prior to serving as a federal prosecutor, she spent four years as a judicial clerk for the Honorable Irene M. Keeley and three years in private practice. Shawn is a graduate of West Virginia University and the WVU College of Law.

Dr. Sytil Murphy Dr. Sytil Murphy earned her Ph.D. in physics in 2008 from Montana State University. Her Ph.D. research was in optics. Her current research field is in physics education research. She has been participating in STEM-related outreach events since she startedgraduate school in 1999, including involvement with the Montana Science Olympiad, Expanding Your Horizons (for middle-school age girls), Peaks and Potentials (summer camp for high-ability, high-potential students) and the FIRST robotics competitions held on the Montana State campus. She and Dr. Jordan Mader have secured funding for and co-organized the activities associated with the Seeding Your Future Initiative at Shepherd University since 2014. The Seeding Your Future Initiative has two parts: the one-day Seeding Your Future Conference aimed at increasing STEM interest in middle-school age girls and the monthly Seeding Your Future Workshop Series for high-school age students which gives them advanced level STEM experiences.

SUSAN PAULEYSusan Pauley is Of Counsel with Steptoe & Johnson PLLC. She currently practices in the area of mineral title examinations. Prior to 2011, Ms. Pauley represented corporate clients in commercial matters and general litigation. She also continues her information and privacy law practice. Ms. Pauley is the leader of the firm's Privacy Practice Team. She is a graduate of William and Mary University and George Washington University.

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ANNE PERELLAAnne Perella resides in Morgantown, WV with her husband and 2 children. She has been in the Army for 23 years, 19 of which have been in the West Virginia Army National Guard. She is a Major and currently serves as the Executive Officer for an Aviation Battalion. Anne graduated from WVU in 2002 and was awarded a Bachelor’s in Multidisciplinary Studies as well as a Master’s in Elementary Education. In addition to volunteering at her children’s school, Anne works full time for the WVARNG as an aviation planner for the upcoming 2017 National Scout Jamboree. She is a certified pilot in multiple helicopters including the UH-1 Huey, OH-58 A/C Kiowa, UH-60 Blackhawk and most recently the UH-72 Lakota

CYNTHIA RODINACynthia Rodina is an instructor in aircraft maintenance at Pierpont Community & Technical College. A 1988 graduate of the Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics, she started her career with Delta Airlines in Atlanta, working for ten years in the hangars on various aircraft systems. She then moved with Delta to Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport and worked line maintenance. After retiring from Delta, she began teaching aircraft maintenance at Pierpont in 2012. She is the proud mother of a 13-year-old son, Lou.

MARNIE RUSTEMEYER Founder and CEO of Billow Global, Marnie Rustemeyer, conceived, designed and created the Billow following her diagnosis of the BRCA mutation gene, a mastectomy and subsequent reconstructive surgeries. She created the Billow pillow as a sleep aide after more than a year of research and development. Additionally, Marnie conducted exhaustive testing of products to aid in the recovery process and was unable to find an effective yet comfortable solution.

After real-world testing and by popular demand, Marnie left her successful 15-year career on Wall Street to bring the Billow to market and help the millions of women who suffer from sleep deprivation due to some form of breast pain resulting from mastectomy, reconstruction, augmentation or other sensitivities – finally get some rest. Now she – along with many others – wouldn’t dream of sleeping without her Billow!

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SARAH ARMSTRONG TUCKERChancellor, WV Council for Community and Technical College Education

Dr. Sarah Armstrong Tucker is the Chancellor of the West Virginia Council for Community andTechnical College Education. Previously, Dr. Tucker served as Vice Chancellor of the Communityand Technical College System of WV, and the Director of Planning and Research for the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission and Community and Technical College System ofWest Virginia. Her work focuses on college access, particularly for first-generation rural students,and redesigning developmental education. She completed her doctorate at the School of Education, University of Michigan in 2010. Prior to pursuing her doctorate, she was a behavioralspecialist and general education teacher in an adolescent girls group home. Dr. Tucker earned a B.A. in Psychology from Harvard University and a M.A. in Quantitative Research Methodologyfrom the University of Michigan.

In addition to her duties with the WV Council for Community and Technical College Education, Dr. Tucker serves on numerous state-wide committees and councils dealing with workforce development, economic development, and other issues relating to community and technical college education.

STEFANIE TOMPKINS, PH.D.Director, Defense Science Office, DARPA

Dr. Tompkins has been the Director of DARPA’s Defense Sciences Office since April 2014, where she leads and manages DARPA’s most exploratory office in identifying and acceleratingbreakthrough technologies to prevent and create strategic surprise. She has held several roles at DARPA, including Program Manager, Deputy Director of DARPA’s Strategic Technology Office,and the DARPA Chief of Staff.

Before joining DARPA, Dr. Tompkins spent 10 years at Science Applications International Corporation. While there, Dr. Tompkins led and managed a successful profit-and-loss unit focused on electro-optic and RF sensor development and data analysis. Prior to SAIC, she served as a military intelligence officer in the U.S. Army.

She has made a number of technical contributions throughout her career to the fields of imagingspectroscopy, geology, navigation, and optical element manufacturing. For instance, she initiatedand led a DARPA program that demonstrated the use of global lightning signals as navigationbeacons, as well as developing new filtering techniques to allow on-the-fly incorporation of diversesources of location data. As a NASA-funded scientist, she developed new methods for extractingmineralogical information from reflectance spectra. Dr. Tompkins has also developed andpatented new spatial and spectral data processing techniques for applications such as change detection, plant species discrimination, and feature extraction from imaging spectroscopy data. She received her Ph.D. and M.Sc. in Geological Science from Brown University, and her B.A. in Geological and Geophysical Sciences from Princeton.

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MINDY WALLSMindy Walls is an Assistant Vice President for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at WVU where she is coordinating the cross-campus initiative in entrepreneurship and innovation. She has 13 yearsexperience in entrepreneurship education and business consulting focusing on business strategy and leadership training and development Walls served as the Associate Director of the West VirginiaUniversity Entrepreneurship Center where she developed the academic minor in entrepreneurship.Later, she became the Center Director where she developed the West Virginia Statewide CollegiateBusiness Plan Competition and other co-curricular student activities. She has developed and taughtnumerous entrepreneurship courses in both face-to-face and online environments. Walls has twicebeen recognized by her peers for teaching In 2011 the SBA named her the State Small Business Financial Champion of the year for he work with student entrepreneurs. She is a member of theUnited States Association of Small Business and Entrepreneurship (USASBE) where she serves on the executive board as the VP of Events and Programs. She has also served that organization as Sr. VP- Elect Programming and VP of Conference. Walls currently serves on the state advisory boardfor the West Virginia Small Business Development Centers. and is a member of the Monongalia,Preston BB&T Bank advisory board.

DR. KATHRYN WILLIAMSON Dr. Kathryn Williamson joined the West Virginia University Department of Physics in January 2016 after spending 3 years as the Public Education Specialist at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) in Green Bank, West Virginia. At NRAO she engaged students and teachers in inquiry-based astronomy investigations using radio telescopes both in-person and online. Her doctorate degree is from Montana State University, and her dissertation was on college students’ understanding of gravity. Her current area of research focuses on how youth in out-of-school-time science clubs, such as the Pulsar Search Collaboratory and Skynet Junior Scholars, learn to see themselves as scientists and choose to pursue careers in science.

Wo m e n & T e c h n o l o g y C o n f e r e n c e

s p o n s o r s

Wo m e n & T e c h n o l o g y C o n f e r e n c e

P l a n n i n g C o m m i t t e e

Anne Barth, Executive Director, TechConnect West Virginia

Kelley M. Goes, Member, Jackson Kelly PLLC

Mary Hunt, Senior Program Officer, Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation

Lisa Lopinsky, The LiLo Group

Ali Mabel, Director, Innovation Strategies, Fourth Economy Consulting

Tracy Miller, President, Mid Atlantic Aerospace Complex

Michele O’Connor, Investment Manager, West Virginia Jobs Investment Trust

Kristina Oliver, State Director, West Virginia Small Business Development Center

Ginny Painter, Senior Vice President for Communications and Marketing, Office of University Communications, Marshall University

Stephanie Pethtel, Executive Coordinator, Allegheny Science & Technology

Dr. Jan Taylor, Director, Division of Science and Research at the WV Higher Education Policy Commission

Trina Karolchik Wafle, WVU Shared Research Facilities Director and WVU National Research Center for Coal and Energy Deputy Director